A watercolor illustration of a woman in a green hooded cloak holding a small bird, with a white cheetah on her shoulder and a pink creature with large eyes nearby, set against a natural landscape with trees and a river in the background.

Studio N LITE is an anime studio based in the U.S. and Tokyo creating prestige film, tv, manga, and products inspired by culture from around the world.

We’ve built a bridge between award winning Hollywood talent, Japanese anime legends, and untapped stories from the African diaspora to bring magical storytelling to life for a global audience.

Anime Feature Films

  • MFINDA Key Art

    MFINDA

    A 13-year-old Congolese girl is transported to the Mfinda, a primordial forest of spirits, gods, and ancestors. There she joins another young girl from a different time and embarks on a journey to find her way back home during a time of conflict between humans and the spirits of nature.

    (In Production)

    Read More
  • WEBE Key Art

    WEBE: Spirit Detective

    When a young detective returns to St. Helena Island to reconnect with his southern roots, he is thrust into solving murders of Gullah Geechee people that have awakened a vengeful Boo Hag spirit seeking justice.

    (In Development)

  • Chiure Key Art

    Chiure: Child of the Sea

    A young Mozambican girl’s coastal community is being taken over by a ruthless foreign fishing company. She discovers a mysterious amulet connected to an ancient sea God that helps save her home.

    (In Development)

  • A watercolor illustration of a girl in a colorful dress standing on grass, looking up at a bright, radiant light with floating eye symbols around her, suggesting enlightenment or spiritual awakening.

    Jungle Emperor Leo: Path of Two

    Meri, a young girl from Ethiopia, meets a tenacious lion cub named Leo and they become fast friends. Soon after, they are thrust into a conflict between their fathers that leads to a war between humans and the animals of Leo’s jungle.

    A re-imagining of the classic manga by Osamu Tezuka.

    (In Development)

Anime Series & Short Films

  • IFE Key Art

    IFE: Secret of the Star Child

    In the aftermath of destruction, a mysterious orphan boy made from stardust harnesses an ancient power to rebuild the lost Kingdom of Ife.

    (Series, In Development)

  • Eeko Key Art

    Story of Eeko (Short Film)

    An African yemboe sprite named Eeko harnesses the power of stardust to save its forest from ecological disaster.

    (In Development)

Latest News

‘Mfinda’ Manga to Serialize at Kodansha Ahead of N LITE Anime Feature (EXCLUSIVE)

A colorful illustration of a woman with black hair, wearing a green cloak with a red and black polka dot hood, and a leopard print dress, holding a white cat. There are various animals, including a pink creature with eyes on its head, an orange creature with a big eye, and a black spider among rocks and trees in the background.

U.S.-Japan anime studio N LITE has struck a co-development partnership with Japanese publishing giant Kodansha to produce a serialized manga based on its feature film “Mfinda,” with the debut set for Kodansha’s Biblio Sirius Magazine in 2026.

The manga, written by N LITE founder Christiano Terry and drawn by studio art director Tom Lintern, in collaboration with Japanese storyboard artist Koma Warita, functions as a prequel to the “Mfinda” feature, expanding the Congolese mythology and sacred forest of spirits and gods at the center of the film.

Jaden and Willow Smith Set to Executive Produce, Voice Roles in Anime Films (Exclusive)

Black and white portrait of a woman wearing a headscarf and a turtleneck, with her arms crossed; on the left, a man with dreadlocks and a deep neckline shirt.

The siblings have teamed up with N LITE, a Black-owned media company and anime studio based in the U.S. and Tokyo.

Former NBA MVP Joel Embiid Boards Anime Feature ‘Mfinda’ as Executive Producer: Companion Doc in the Works (Exclusive)

A man with Afro hair and a beard sitting on a white sofa in a modern living room, looking to the side with a thoughtful expression.

Cameroonian-American Philadelphia 76ers center and former NBA MVP Joel Embiid has joined the producing team of “Mfinda” an upcoming anime feature from the Tokyo- and LA-based studio N LITE.

Collaborators

A person holding a sign that says "Got a plan?" during a protest or rally.
Logo of Tezuka Productions Co., Ltd featuring a stylized blue cat head.
Close-up of a black smartphone with a blue screen, resting on a black surface.
Facebook logo with stylized black and gray font.
Silhouette of a cat sitting on a wooden surface
A close-up of a cell phone with a shopping app open, showing products on a digital screen.
Highland logo in black stylized font.

Contact

Cartoon creature with a unicorn horn, pink nose, and furry body, holding another similar creature with a unicorn horn.

Thank you for your interest in contacting us.

We do not accept unsolicited project submissions, however, we are always happy to connect with people who are passionate about storytelling and may be interested in collaborating :)